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CANDLELIGHTING

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THE JEWISH VIEW

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HOLIDAYS

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JUDAISM 101

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{weblog_name} - Little Cold Wars
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Yesterday, my wife called me at work. Normally, in the crush of deadlines, she knows better. But this was different. “Your cousin from Long Island left a message at home,” she said. “Sounds like you should call her back.” I immediately called back my cousin, who is named after the same person as I am (our grandfather) and to whom I have not spoken in about 17 years. She was calling to inform me that her mother—my 85-year-old ailing aunt—had passed away suddenly. The funeral was held only a few hours after her passing, so I was too late to attend. I hadn’t talked to my aunt in about five or six years, and hadn’t seen her since the early ‘90s. My cousin, who is an Orthodox Jew, wailed over the phone lines. She and her sister no longer… read more